This October, one of my favorite geomatics events (anywhere) returns. Great track sessions, panels, keynotes, exhibits, a career fair… and fun.
The inaugural GoGeomatics Expo, held in November of 2023 in Calgary, Alberta Canada exceeded expectations for attendance, participation, exhibitors, and topical tracks. Coming again this October 28-30 to the same venue in Calgary, this year is looking to deliver even more.
Billed as Canada’s National Geomatics Expo, there is plenty of appeal for geomatics and geospatial professionals and practitioners, and last year there was significant attendance and participation from across North America. In contrast to the huge vendor-brand-centric shows, This Expo has a broader focus and is organized by the GoGeomatics community. This held appeal for me (and I’ve volunteered both years).
Plus, there is an unmistakable touch of Canadian friendliness and hospitality. In 2023, the City of Calgary joined GoGeomatics in giving attendees a traditional Calgary welcome. The gathering can be both hectic and also an atmosphere for stress-free networking.
Calgary is a great host location, and the venue at the Big 4 Roadhouse on famed Stampede Grounds is convenient, the registration is a fraction of the big vendor shows ($175 early, or $199 last-minute), accommodations are quite affordable in October, and the city is surprisingly easy to travel to from just about anywhere in North America. Ok, so I’ve done the shameless (but sincere) plug; here are some agenda highlights:
Subject Tracks
Subsurface Utility Engineering Advances
Reality Capture and Digital Twins
Look online for summaries of panels and sessions for each track. While the agenda is already well fleshed out, you can still submit an abstract to participate as a speaker, panelist, sponsor, exhibitor, or propose a workshop.
Other events held in conjunction with the Expo
buildingSMART Canada Annual BIM Summit
CanSLAM (one of the events of the Canada SLAM circuit) will feature results from the field testing done in 2024,
Canada Maps Program
Fast Pitches. This annual event challenges participants to present their project, paper, or product in 3 minutes, with a 2-minute Q&A. Frenetic fun!
Annual Awards Program
Keynotes an Feattured Presentations
Gordon “Oz” Osinski is a professor in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Western Ontario, Canada. The focus of his keynote address will be on understanding impact cratering as a planetary geological process, on the Earth, Moon, and Mars.
Bryn Fosburgh, Senior Vice President of Trimble, will give the Geospatial AI keynote, discussing how to balance human and AI aspects for geospatial applications.
Pete Kelsey, owner of VCTO labs is internationally recognized for his work in reality capture of high-profile locations and will recount his recent 3D capture of Alcatraz.
Claudia Cozzitorto, President, buildingSMART Canada, speaks on an openBIM future.
John Bowers, senior director, New Business GeoIntelligence, MDA, will give the Earth Observation keynote
Dale Booth, CEO, Innovation 7, keynotes on Indigenous (i7) and OpenBIM
Zahidual Islam and Tachara Larocque give the hydrospatial keynote: “Alberta’s Flood Hazard and Fluvial Hazard Identification Initiatives”.
Peter Srajer, chief scientist with the Prostar Group will give the subsurface utility keynote, “From Subsurface Collection to 3D Modeling”.
Mack Kowalski, founder of LiDARholics will present the Results of Accuracy Testing for Laser Scanners in Concrete Verification.
Note that this event is not as purely surveying-focused as would be a state/provincial surveying association/society event. However, it also encompasses broader aspects of geomatics, many of which are rapidly becoming integral facets of the surveying profession. E.g., RPAS/UAS, Reality Capture, Hydrospatial, and more.
Register and join us for the rich content, and fun.
